Part I: Seismic Refraction

1. PSTE 4223 Methodessismiques Part I: Seismic Refraction Anne Obermann 2 x 3h

2. Overview • Introduction – historical outline • Chapter 1: Fundamental concepts • Chapter 2: Data acquisition and material • Chapter 3: Data processing and interpretation

3. Wave Propagation according to Huygens Principle

4. Summary h1 • v1 determined from the slope of the direct arrival (straight line passing throughtheorigin) • v2 determined from the slope of the head wave (straight line first arrival beyondthecriticaldistance) • Layer thickness h1 determined from the intercept time of the head wave (already knowing v1 and v2)

5. Complete analysis process

6. Special cases

7. Dipping Interfaces • What if the critically refracted interface is not horizontal? • A dipping interface produces a pattern that looks just like a horizontal interface! • Velocities are called “apparent velocities” • What do we do? Shoot lines forward and reversed • Beware: the calculated thicknesses will be perpendicular to the interface, not vertical In this case, velocity of lower layer is underestimated underestimated

8. So : Dipping Interfaces Vf: apparent velocity for all trajectories “downwards” Vr: apparent velocity for all trajectories upwards These apparent velocities are given by: Real velocity of the second layer:

9. Dipping Interfaces You can also write: If the dip is small (<<5%), you can take the average slope, as is close to 1 The perpendicular distances to the interface are calculated from the intercept times.

10. Dipping Interfaces Example, V1=2500 m/s, V2=4500 m/s A very small inclination of the interface is enough to cause a large difference between apparent and real velocity!!!

11. Step discontinuity Offsets are detected as discontinuities in the t-x diagram -Offset because the interface is deeper and D’E’ receives no refracted rays. Geological example: -backfilled quarry -normal fault dt When the size of the step discontinuity is small with respect to the depth of the refractor, the following equation can be used: dz

12. Unfavourablegeologicalsettings withrefractionseismics Different interpretation methods are available Red ray pathes are alwayshidden by shorter black rays

13. Before starting the interpretation, inspect the traveltime-distance graphs • As a check on quality of data being acquired • In order to decide which interpretational method to use: - simple solutions for planar layers and for a dipping refractor - more sophisticated analysis for the case of an irregular interface

14. Travel time anomalies and their respective causes Bump and cusp in layer 1 Lens with anomalous velocity in layer 2 Cusp and bump at the interface between layers 2 and 3 Vertical, but narrow zone with anomalous velocity within layer 3

15. Interpretation methods Several different interpretational methods have been published, falling into two approaches: • Delay time • Wavefront construction Two methods emerge as most commonly used: • Plus-minus method (Hagedoorn, 1959) • Generalised Reciprocal method – GRM (Palmer, 1980)

16. Phantom arrivals Undulatinginterfaces • Impossibletoextrapolatetheheadwave arrival time curve back to theintercept • How do we determine layer thickness beneath the shot, S? ??

17. Phantom arrivals Shoot a long-offset shot, SL 2. The head wave traveltime curves for both shots will be parallel, offset by time ΔT 3. Subtract ΔT from the SL arrivalstogeneratefictitious2nd layer arrivals close to S – thephantomarrivals 4. The intercept point at S can thenbedetermined: Ti 5. Use the usual formula to determineperpendicularlayerthicknessbeneath S

18. Phantom arrivals Move offset shot to end shot to determinewhich part corresponds to bedrockarrivals Advantage: remove the necessity to extrapolate the travel time graph from beyond the crossover point back to the zero-offset point. Intercept time 2

19. Plus minus-method The method uses intercept times and delay times in the calculation of the depth to the refractor below any geophone location. The delay time ( ) is the difference in time between: T(SG) along SABG T(PQ) The total delay time is effectively the sum of the “shot-point delay time” and the “geophone delay time”

20. Plus minus-method

21. Assumptions to use the method: • Present layers are homogeneous • Large velocity contrast between the layers • Angle of dip of the refractor is less than 10 degrees

22. Plus minus Method Principle A G B C E F Time CDE= Time ABCD + Time DEFG – Time ABCEFG Total time

23. Plus minus method

24. Plus minus method Consider the model with two layers and an undulating interface. The refraction profile is reversed with two shots (S1 and S2) fired into each detector (D). Consider the following three travel times: The reciprocal time is the time from S1 to S2 (b) Forward shot into the detector (c) Reverse shot into the detector Our goal is to find v2and the delay time at the detector, δD. From the delay time, δD , we can find the depth of the interface.

25. Plus minus method (a) The reciprocal time is the time from S1 to S2 (b) Forward shot into the detector (c) Reverse shot into the detector

26. Plus minus method (a) The reciprocal time is the time from S1 to S2 (b) Forward shot into the detector (c) Reverse shot into the detector

27. Plus minus method Calculate the depth to the refractor beneath any geophone (z) from the delay time i being the critical angle

28. a) Composite travel-time distance graph b) graph c) Calculated depth to a refractor Provides a possibility to examine lateral velocity variations (lateral resolution equal to the geophone separation)

29. Plus minus method Exercice

30. Generalized reciprocal method (1979) The plus-minus method assumes a linear interface between points where the ray leaves the interface. A more powerful technique is the Generalized reciprocal method in which pairs of rays are chosen that leave the interface at the same location. -> further development of the plus minus method

31. GeneralizedReciprocalMethod -GRM requires more receiversthan Plus-Minus -multiple estimates of the depth are made beloweach point, usingdifferentseparationsbetween X and Y. -geophysicist must select the optimal distance (XY) (mostlinear T- and the mostdetail in a T+ profile) XY = Optimal distance

32. Generalized reciprocal method

33. Generalized reciprocal method “An Introduction to Applied and Environmental Geophysics” by John M. Reynolds

34. Generalized reciprocal method

35. Fan Shooting • Discontinuous targets can be mapped using radial transects: called “Fan Shooting” • A form of seismic tomography

36. Fan Shooting Technique first used in the 1920’s in the search for salt domes. The higher velocity of the salt causes earlier arrivals for signals that travel though the salt. Eve and Keys, Applied Geophysics, 1928

38. Travel time Tomography Seismic tomography (tomo=slice+graph=picture) refers to the derivation of the velocity structure of earth from seismic waves. There are at two main types of seismic data to be inverted: traveltime data and waveform data. Traveltime tomography reconstructs earth velocity models with several times lower resolution compared to waveform tomograms. But on the other hand traveltime tomography is typically much more robust, easier to implement, and computationally much cheaper

39. Travel time Tomography Traveltime tomography is the procedure for reconstructing the earth's velocity model from picked traveltimes. This is an inverse problem : convert observed measurements into a model that is capable of explaining them. -1 d= Gm m=G d

40. Travel time Tomography Ray tracing

41. Example Velocity tomogram on left and reflection image obtained from CDP data on right

42. Applications

43. Shallow applications of seismic refraction 1. Depth to bedrock • velocity of bedrock greater than unconsolidated layer • • in this example, a shot point was located every 30 m • • depth to bedrock increases with x

44. Shallow applications of seismic refraction 1. Depth to bedrock (example from Northern Alberta) Seismic refraction was used to determine depth to bedrock at the location where a pipeline was planned to cross a creek. Note that the direct wave is only the first arrival at the first 2 geophones. This is because of a very high velocity contrast between the upper and lower layers.

45. Shallow applications of seismic refraction 1. Depth to bedrock (example from Northern Alberta) The model below was derived from the seismic data using the general reciprocal method.

46. Shallow applications of seismic refraction 2. Locating a water table

47. Shallow applications of seismic refraction 3. Determine rippability

48. Depth of Moho from seismic refraction • the head wave that travels in the upper mantle is called Pn • ● reflection from the Moho is called PmP • ● reduced travel time is sometimes plotted on the vertical axis. • t' = t – x/vred • where vredis the reduction velocity. This has the effect of making arrivals with v=vredplot horizontally on a t-x plot. • ● in the figure on the left, the crustal P-wave velocity was used as the reduction velocity.

49. Tectonic studies of the continental lithosphere with seismic refraction Gorman, A.R. et al, Deep probe: imaging the roots of western North America, Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 39, 375-398, 2002. Explosive shots up to 2400 kg with seismic recorders deployed on a profile from 60°N to 43°N

50. Tectonic studies of the continental lithosphere with seismic refraction The figure above shows ray tracing used to model the data. Measures the variation in Moho depth and crustal structure. Note that with a reduction velocity of 8 km/s, Pnplots as a horizontal line, while the slower Pg has a positive slope.